Rice rationed as panic buying starts

Supermarkets are rationing rice in some stores as a result of panic buying by worried customers concerned about a world shortage.

Tesco, Asda, Morrisons, Lidl and Netto have introduced a one or two-bag limit at some stores. The price of rice has soared by 70 per cent in the last 12 months. A 1kg bag of basmati rice has gone up by 27 per cent at Tesco and Asda and 39 per cent in Sainsburys. It hasn't helped that rice producers such as China, Vietnam, Egypt and India, have banned exports so they can feed their own people.

Danish-owned Netto, which has 184 stores in the UK alone, has limited its 10kg bag of rice to just one per family while Lidl has introduced "family volumes" in a bid to halt traders snapping up its rice.

Tesco has had to introduce a limit in one part of Leicester which has a large Asian population.

It has restricted sales of rice to just two packs per person at its Hamilton site in the city but said no other stores had been affected.

A spokesman said: "There is no supply problem. Rice was restricted for a couple of weeks at one store only.

"No other Tesco store has been affected."

There was also a six-bag limit at a nearby Morrisons in the Freemans Park branch of the city while Asda introduced a similar ban at its Thurmaston store, also in Leicester.

The rationing follows moves by American supermarket Wal-Mart, its own discount warehouse Sam's Club as well as warehouse group Costco.

An increase in demand for rice is being blamed on improved living conditions in the Far East.

Demand is up but the amount of land being given over to grow the crop has been going down. On top of this bad weather has also caused problems with distribution. It also means the price of Indian and Chinese takeaways could increase.

A British Retail Consortium spokesman said: "Supermarkets are aware of issues of global supply and have already taken necessary steps to ensure adequate rice supplies."